traveling "excitement"

So I was really tired when I put up the last post. I actually had to edit it (thanks, Jeannine, for pointing that out to me!!) after posting due to a typographical error. I blame the jet lag!

Speaking of jets . . . There were 2 "significant" events as I traveled from DC to Santiago. I knew this was going to be an interesting trip when, as I was waiting in the security checkpoint line, the zipper on one of my carry-on bags broke!! Anyway, here are the stories:

1 - This one happened pretty much as soon as I got on the plane. I was sitting in my seat, minding my own business, when a man who was walking down the aisle stopped at the seat and stared at me. I looked at him and he said, "HELLO!!" I said, "hi". He said something to the effect of is this a good day, we are travelling together!! Then he asked if I accept Canadian money. I told him that I wasn't staying in Toronto, I was going on to Chile. He said he wanted to pay me to borrow my phone. I told him he didn't need to pay me to borrow it -- I would let him use it for free! He said, "But it will be long distance - I need to pay you for it." So he started searching through his stuff for some change. I said I didn't know what it would charge my phone. He assured me that it would be 50 cents. He actually gave me 75 cents, but it was Canadian money. I think at this point it is important to note that he didn't actually ASK if he could borrow it, he just sort of told me he was. Anyway, so he called someone he kept calling some dessert name (honey bun, sweetie pie -- something edible, I'm sure). He was telling them they needed to come pick him up at the airport, but he didn't know the flight number. He asked me, but because I was going on the United flight through Air Canada, my number was different (and I really wasn't bothered with helping him out any after he had pretty much demanded to use my phone). He started asking other people around us for the flight number, but they either didn't know it, or had witnessed the entire dialogue between him and me and they didn't want to help him either!! Since he wasn't getting any help from them, he started walking up toward the front of the plane. I think he went and asked the pilot!! While he was gone, I sort of looked around like -- he just took my phone!!! I was a little concerned, but not too much -- he had left his stuff on the seat. When he finally came back and returned my phone, I just thought to myself, "this is going to be an interesting flight!!" I pretty much ignored him for the rest of the flight, so it worked out!

2 - I know, that last one was pretty long. This one is a little detailed, but hopefully I'll be able to keep it short! I finally made it to the airport in Santiago. As I was standing, waiting for my checked bag, I had my carry-on luggage at my feet. I was watching the bags as they came out from the back, when all of a sudden, I noticed something come up beside me. It was a dog!! At first I thougt it was a seeing-eye dog, but then I noticed that there were 2 of them and neither had a leash (what's the point of a seeing-eye dog if there's not a blind person attached to them!!??). One of the dogs was sniffing a bag my mother had brought up to me when she and dad came for my birthday. A man in a uniform started rattling something in Spanish, to which I said, "No habla Espagnol." (as a side note, I'm wondering why people believe me when I answer that I don't speak Spanish, but I say it in Spanish . . . . . just a thought) Anyway, he then asked me in English if I had any fresh fruits or vegetables in my bag. I said no, I had some coffee beans, but no fruits or vegetables that I knew of, but he was more than welcome to look (like my saying "don't look" would have stopped him!!) He opened the bag (fortunately the zipper didn't break again!) and looked through it. When he didn't find anything, he asked what I had used the bag for last. I started to say that I hadn't used it before this time, when I suddenly remembered . . . . When mom brought the bag to me, she brought me some apples!! I told him this and it seemed to satisfy him, so he just left. I was just really impressed with those dog's sense of smell - to be able to sniff out the scent of apples when they hadn't been in the bag for several days!! This all made me wonder, too . . . how do you train fruit and vegetable-sniffing dogs . . . . . .

O.K. so that second one ended up being a little long, but you've got to admit -- it's pretty funny! I will say this is one time I can say in good conscience, "I blame my mother!" :-)